Both everyday life experience and a growing body of research show just how hard it is to determine the credibility of online sources. Traditional checklist approaches to evaluating websites (e.g., the CRAAP test) are ineffective, despite their continued prevalence. A more effective approach to quickly assessing the credibility of an online source is lateral reading. “Lateral reading” essentially involves quickly moving off of a webpage and learning more about a source from other online information. In this hands-on virtual workshop, librarians Andrea Baer and Dan Kipnis will introduce “lateral reading” strategies for online source evaluation. Participants will then practice lateral reading and reflect on how they can help students develop these skills.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this class, students will be able to:
List and apply lateral reading strategies to evaluating online sources.
Explain ways to teach lateral reading to students in your educational context.
Instructors
Andrea Baer is a Public Services Librarian at Rowan University Libraries. Prior to becoming a librarian, Andrea taught literature, languages, and writing in various educational settings, including higher education. Her research and writing focuses on information literacy and reflective teaching practice.
Dan Kipnis is the Life Sciences Librarian at Rowan University Libraries. He has published and presented on a variety of topics including digital archives, scholarly communication and and information literacy.
